Combined sofa and extension-table



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. B. H. MEYER.

COMBINED SOFA AND EXTENSION TABLE.

Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

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(No Model.) 3 SheetsSl1eet 2.

E. H. MEYER.

COMBINED SOFA AND EXTENSION TABLE. No. 388,898. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

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E. H. MEYER.

COMBINED SOFA AND EXTENSION TABLE. No. 388,898. Patented Sept. 4, 1888.

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rrnn STATES ATFNT @rrrcn.

EDYVARD H. MEYER, OF L OUISVILLE, KENTUCKY.

COMBINED SOFA AND EXTENSION=TABLE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 388,898, dated September 4, 1888.

Application filed June 14, 1887.

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1', EDWARD H. MEYER, of the city of Louisville, and county of Jefferson, in the State of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful improvements in a Combined Sofa and Extension-Table; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to a combined sofa and extensiontable, and it is especially designed for use in places where economy of space is an important item; and to this end my invention consists in certain novel features, which will be hereinafter fully described, and then more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

l'n the annexed drawings, illustrating my invention, Figure 1 is a perspective of my invention. Fig. 2 is a detail representation of one of the slotted guides for the sofa-back. Figs. 3 and 4 are detail representations of one of the devices upon which the sofa-back is swung, and show their parts as connected and disconnected, respectively. Fig. 5 is a top plan of the device when converted into a table, showing the leaves as drawn apart, between which is adapted to be placed other leaves. Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of the tabletop. Fig. 7 is a modification,with aportion broken away, exposing the guide, which is shown as provided with a slot running round its entire length to allow the sofa-back to be shifted from one side to the other, reversing the facing position of the same; and Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the device, showing another means for permitting the facing position of the sofa to be changed.

Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in the several figures.

The object of my invention is to provide an article of furniture especially adapted for use in places where economy of space is an import ant item; and to this end it consists in providing a sofa which can be quickly and easily converted into a table by means of pins or prohaving a roller which runs in a curved slot formed in the guide secured to the sofa-back.

Another object of my invention is to provide means whereby the table may be extended to any desired length; and to this end it consists in providing the interior of the sofaback with Serial No.24l,319. (No model.)

tracks or ways, and the back of the sofa-back with projections adapted to run in the said tracks or ways.

Another object of my invention is to provide a sofa the back of which can be changed from one side to the other, thus reversing the facing position of the sofa and making it especially adapted for use in certain places, as in cars, and in such other places where it is necessary or desirable to reverse the facing position of the seat.

Another object of my invention is to cheapen the cost and lessen the labor consequent upon the production of such articles and at the same time to produce a device which shall possess great strength and not be loose and shaky.

To moreparticularly describe my invention, I will proceed to describe the drawings, in which- A represents a sofa of the ordinary construction, having the usual number of legs or supporting-feet, a, to which are secured at a suitable distanceabove the ground the seat proper,b. The legs or supporting-feet a of the sofa extend up beyond the seat a suitable distance, and the ends of each pairare connected by cross-pieces c a, forming the arms of the sofa, and upon which the sofa-back (which, when the device is converted intoatablefiorms the table-top) will rest.

B represents a sofa-back made of a proper height, and which is secured to the sofaframe in such a manner (as will be hereinafter described) that it can be readily swung forward or backward, convert-ing the sofa into a table, and vice versa. This back B preferably consists of an inner piece, B, having at each of its sides project-ions b, which serve to connect this inner piece with an outer lid or cover,B in such a manner as to leave a space between the said outer lid or cover and the said inner piece, for the purpose to be hereinafter described. This outer lid or cover, B, is preferably made in two pieces, 13 B, each one of which,when the device is used as an extension table, is adapted to be drawn outward in order to extend the table to any length.

Secured to each of the arms of the sofa,at a suitable distance from its rear portion, is a plate, 0, (shown in detail in Figs. 3 and 4,) and having ascrew-threadcd extension adapted to receive a screw, D, provided with ascrewhead, d. This screw D is loosely encircled by a ring, E, which forms a roller or bearing upon which the sofa-back can more easily roll in converting the sofa into a table, and vice 'versa. The screw D is situated within a slot, f, formed in a guide, Ewhich guide is secured to the sofa-back, and the slot of which is curved and provided with a groove or mortise, 6, running around its entire length, forminga guide or track for the screw-head, keepingit from lateral displacement. The slot of the guide-piece F is made of sufficient size so that the ring E upon the screw will run therein, the ring being kept from accidental displace men); laterally by means of the screw-head d on one side and the plate 0 on the other. This plate 0 is provided with perforations to receive screws, by means of which it is socured to the sofa'back. The guides F are preferably two in number,and are situated one on each side of the sofa-back, being secured to the extremities of the inner piece, B and they project at right angles thereto,as shown clearly in Fig. 1. They are preferably made in the form shown in detail in Fig. 2, (triangular.)

From the foregoing it will be evident that all that will be necessary to convert the sofa into a table is to swing the sofa-back upward and forward, where it will rest upon the arms 0 c of the sofa and form the top of a table.

The interior of the sofa-back is provided with a series of grooved rods or strips, 0 0 so arranged with relation to each other as to form guides or ways G, within which correspondingly-formed rods H, secured to the interior of the sofa back, slide, as shown clearly in Fig. 5. Obviously, by this arrangement the portion B, which, as I have before stated, forms the top of the table when the device is used as such, can be extended to any desired length by drawing the two portions B B outwardly and in opposite directions and placing between them leaves in the same manner as in the ordinary extensiontable. These leaves B B are prevented from being drawn 'outtoo far by means of stops b Z), driven transversely within the rods- H, and which abut against the end pieces of the sofa-back when the leaves havebeen drawn out to the fullest extent desirable.

In Fig. 7 I have shown the slotted guide: piece as made in a slightly different form from that shown in the rest of the figures, and as having the slot extending entirely around the three sides. The purpose of this is to allow the sofa-back to be swung from one side of the sofa to the other, reversing the facing position of the same, and which especially adapts the device for use in certain placesas steam-cars, for instance-where it is desirable to so shift two seats as to have them facing each other, and in Fig. 8 still another means is shown for permitting the reversal of the facing position of the sofa. In this figure aplate, L, secured to the sofa-back, is shown, having a longitudinal slot, Z, for the reception of the pin D, and

the ring or roller E, encircling the said pin, which pin-D is secured to the sofaarms caud situated within a groove, Z, formed on the inner side of the said arm, within which it is adapted to travel. Obviously, when this form is adopted, all that is necessary in order to convert the sofa into a table is to lift the back B up until the pin D will rest in the lowest extremity of the slot Z, and then to turn the back B down until it rests upon the top of the arms 0, (the pins D obviously acting as pivots for the said back.) In order to reverse the facing position of the sofa, it is accomplished in the following manner: After the sofa has been convertedinto a table in' the manner above explained, the back is pushed forward to the opposite side of the device, and is then turned so as to rest vertically against the arms 0 c, as will be readily comprehended, the pins D traveling in the grooves l in the sofa-arms with the back B, and the said back resting upon the rollers E, facilitating the rolling forward of the said back.

Secured to the under side of the scat proper, b, is a drawer, I, for the reception of any desired articles.

Although I have herein spoken of my device as applied especially to a sofa, it will be evident that it can be just as well used for a bench or can be applied to a seat or chair.

The advantages of an article of furniture constructed after the plan herein set forth will be readily comprehended. It not only saves the expense of having both a sofa and a table, but it economizes space, and when used in a steam car or boat, or whenever desired, they can be so situated as to have two seats facing each other and a table between them, upon which to play cards or to write or forany other purpose.

The manner herein described of grooving the rods which form the guides or ways and correspondingly shaping the strips secured to the table-top which run in these guides or ways and by means of which the leaves of the table are extended, also possesses great advantages, as by this arrangement the leaves are not so liable to come off or be loose and shaky, by reason of the fact that the projections upon the upper slides fit within the guides or ways and are thus held securely therein from any accidental displacement I also provide a device which, from its simplicity of construction, and from its entire absence of any parts liable to become easily broken or to get out of order, reduces its cost to a minimum and allows me to place-it on the market at but a slight increase in cost over that of the ordinary sofa or bench or the ordinary extension-table.

Having now described the construction, uses, and advantages of my invention, what I believe to be new, and what I therefore claim, is r 1. In a combined sofa and table, the sofaarms having plates secured thereto, provided with perforations for the reception of screws IIO carrying rings or rollers, in combination with the sofa-back having guides secured thereto formed with curved slots having mortises or grooves, all arranged substantially as shown and described.

2. In a combined sofa and extension-table, the sofa, the hack of which is adapted to form the top of the table when so converted and which is provided with outwardly-projecting slotted guides, the said slots being curved and adapted to receive pins or projections secured to the sofa-arms, in combination with means for extending the table to any length, consisting of grooved rods or strips so arranged within the interior of the sofa-back as to form guides or ways for correspondinglyformed strips secured to the under side of the extensiouleaves of the table top, and which strips are provided with stops to limit their outward movement, substantially as shown and described.

3. In a combined sofa and extensiontable, the sofa, the back of which is adapted to form the top of the table when so converted and which is provided with outwardly-projecting slotted guides, the said slots being curved and formed with grooves or mortises and are adapted to receive pins or lugs secured to the sofa arms,which pins are provided with rollers, for the purpose set forth, in combination with means for extending the table to any length, consisting of grooved rods or strips so an ranged within the interior of the sofa-back as to form guides or ways for correspondinglyshaped strips secured to the under side of the extension-leaves B of the table-top, substantially as shown and described.

4. In a combined sofa and table, the sofa having a back adapted to be swung from one side of the sofa to the other, changing the fad ing position of the sofa, which consists of guide-arms having slots extending around their entire sides in the form of triangle, within which run rollers situated on theserews secured to the sofaarms, substantially in the manner herein shown and described.

5. In a device of the character herein described, the sofa, the arms of which are grooved for the reception of pins or lugs having rollers E, and the said pins and rollers, in combination with the back B, adapted to be swung from one side of the device to the other and provided with plates having grooves likewise for the reception of the pins or lugs D, all arranged and combined to operate substantiall y as described.

In testimony that I claim the above as my invention I hereunto set my hand in the pres ence of two subscribing witnesses.

EDWARD H. MEYER.

\Vitnesses:

Louis SonIoKINonu, AUG. Voss. 

